Course-Embedded Assignment Reflection for EDLD 5333 Self-Assessment This course focused on a subject that was a sore subject at my school, Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) requirements of No Child Left Behind (NCLB). I walked through the doors of Alice Johnson Junior High School at the beginning of school year 2008-2009 and they were in school improvement for not meeting AYP. I was familiar with this term in the previous two schools but had never, personally, dealt with it. I was promptly acclimated to what it meant and how we, the faculty and staff, were going to achieve success. This course arrived at the most opportune time to provide me with the knowledge I needed to assist with our campus vision of moving to the next level as a Recognized School. Once the principal received knowledge about me working towards my master’s degree, I was appointed to serve on the Site-Based Decision-Making Committee (SBDM). This now categorized me, officially, as one of the campus instructional leaders. As Jennings and Renter stated, “NCLB is clearly having a major impact on American public education (Jennings, J., & Renter, D., 2006). As I assisted with the Campus Improvement Plan (CIP) I came to the realization that our educators and children are being held accountable to higher standards. Learn as a Learner As an SBDM member I was now placed in the midst of assisting with determining our campus goals that would ultimately indicate success for our students and become a Recognized Campus. This process began in June 2010 by attending a three day “Transformers” workshop retreat in Conroe, TX. I also assisted by building a wiki space for the SBDM to brainstorm ideas 24/7. Our first mission after data analyses was to reevaluate and reiterate the school’s vision. One of the initial steps a school leader must take towards school improvement is to set a vision for the school (Rakiz&Swansen, 2000). This class gave me the knowledge to become that leader and assist with determining our student’s performance and achievement, student’s strengths, staff strengths, safe learning environment, parent/community involvement, and where we are going. Lifelong Learning Skills The skills acquired during this course have already been applied to the success of my students, school, district and community. If I am unsure of how to accomplish a goal, I also have the knowledge of how to research for the information. I have saved almost every book, document, web site, presentation, etc., that I encountered during this course for future references. As an instructional leader I will also use these resources to share with my colleagues and superiors. We endorse continual learning when we say that individuals should constantly add to their knowledge—but there will be little to add if people are not sharing (Fullan, 2002). It has been an awesome opportunity sharing and receiving ideas from my classmates on the course discussion board. This professional experience has given me tons of ideas and information that I will pass on to my students, educators, and community.
References
Jones, L. & Crochet, F. (2007, December 17). The Importance of Visions for Schools and School Improvement. Retrieved from the Connexions Web site: http://cnx.org/content/m15634/1.1/
Jennings, J., & Renter, . (2006). Ten big effects of the No Child Left Behind Act on public schools. Phi Delta Kappan, 88(2), 95.
Fullan, M. (2002). The change leader. Educational Leadership, 59(8), 16-20.
Self-Assessment
This course focused on a subject that was a sore subject at my school, Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) requirements of No Child Left Behind (NCLB). I walked through the doors of Alice Johnson Junior High School at the beginning of school year 2008-2009 and they were in school improvement for not meeting AYP. I was familiar with this term in the previous two schools but had never, personally, dealt with it. I was promptly acclimated to what it meant and how we, the faculty and staff, were going to achieve success. This course arrived at the most opportune time to provide me with the knowledge I needed to assist with our campus vision of moving to the next level as a Recognized School. Once the principal received knowledge about me working towards my master’s degree, I was appointed to serve on the Site-Based Decision-Making Committee (SBDM). This now categorized me, officially, as one of the campus instructional leaders. As Jennings and Renter stated, “NCLB is clearly having a major impact on American public education (Jennings, J., & Renter, D., 2006). As I assisted with the Campus Improvement Plan (CIP) I came to the realization that our educators and children are being held accountable to higher standards.
Learn as a Learner
As an SBDM member I was now placed in the midst of assisting with determining our campus goals that would ultimately indicate success for our students and become a Recognized Campus. This process began in June 2010 by attending a three day “Transformers” workshop retreat in Conroe, TX. I also assisted by building a wiki space for the SBDM to brainstorm ideas 24/7. Our first mission after data analyses was to reevaluate and reiterate the school’s vision. One of the initial steps a school leader must take towards school improvement is to set a vision for the school (Rakiz&Swansen, 2000). This class gave me the knowledge to become that leader and assist with determining our student’s performance and achievement, student’s strengths, staff strengths, safe learning environment, parent/community involvement, and where we are going.
Lifelong Learning Skills
The skills acquired during this course have already been applied to the success of my students, school, district and community. If I am unsure of how to accomplish a goal, I also have the knowledge of how to research for the information. I have saved almost every book, document, web site, presentation, etc., that I encountered during this course for future references. As an instructional leader I will also use these resources to share with my colleagues and superiors. We endorse continual learning when we say that individuals should constantly add to their knowledge—but there will be little to add if people are not sharing (Fullan, 2002). It has been an awesome opportunity sharing and receiving ideas from my classmates on the course discussion board. This professional experience has given me tons of ideas and information that I will pass on to my students, educators, and community.
References
Jones, L. & Crochet, F. (2007, December 17). The Importance of Visions for Schools and School Improvement. Retrieved from the Connexions Web site: http://cnx.org/content/m15634/1.1/
Jennings, J., & Renter, . (2006). Ten big effects of the No Child Left Behind Act on public schools. Phi Delta Kappan, 88(2), 95.
Fullan, M. (2002). The change leader. Educational Leadership, 59(8), 16-20.
Embedded Course Assignments